"Thump!"

As the ancient bells rang once more, the chatter in the once noisy arena gradually subsided until it completely disappeared.

"laugh!"

Several whooshing sounds rang out, and when everyone looked up, they saw familiar figures slowly sitting down on the seats on the high platform.

"The man in the black robe with white hair and beard, sitting in the head seat, is none other than Jia Yan, the dean of the Weaponry Academy, and also Lin Jinglei's master."

Looking in the direction Jin Yuanbao pointed, one could see that Jia Yan's true energy surged with a hint of heat, distorting the air. Lin Jinglei also rushed forward upon seeing Jia Yan's arrival. Because of the distance, Qin Xin could see a satisfied smile on Jia Yan's face.

"That middle-aged man over there, wearing a gray tight-fitting training uniform, who looks somewhat simple and honest, is none other than Wei Ji, the dean of the Earth Martial Academy."

"And that middle-aged woman, the one wearing a dark yellow academy robe, is Mo Fufen, the dean of the Beast Martial Arts Academy."

Qin Xin was meeting the three deans for the first time, so he sized them up. He found that Jia Yan seemed a bit domineering and had the style of protecting his own, constantly talking to the other two deans about trivial matters; Wei Ji's personality was just like Shi Shan's, after all, the two were master and disciple; as for Mo Fufen, Qin Xin's first impression was that she was very experienced, although she was middle-aged, her charm was comparable to Hua Jin's.

To Qin Xin's surprise, none of the three deans were sitting in the main seat. Instead, an old man in a blue Taoist robe was sitting in the main seat, the same person he had met in the Trial Forest.

"Huo Sheng?"

Upon seeing this person, Qin Xin recalled being invited by him to join the Pill Academy.

"Qin Xin, how did you get to know the Dean of the Pill Academy?"

Jin Yuanbao was somewhat surprised to hear Qin Xin directly state the old man's name.

"In the Trial Forest, he invited me to join the Alchemy Academy, but I refused," Qin Xin replied casually.

"He refused! Do you know how powerful Huo Sheng is?!" Jin Yuanbao exclaimed. "The Pill Academy is a very special institution in the Eastern Wilderness Academy. The students who can join it are all people with extremely high talent in alchemy, and their status is even higher than that of other academies in the inner academy."

"Moreover, Huo Sheng himself is a sixth-grade alchemist. If one has the opportunity to be accepted as his personal disciple, it would be a meteoric rise. After all, he is someone who can sit on equal footing with the dean and is an honored guest in any force in the Eastern Wilderness!"

Hearing Jin Yuanbao's感慨 (sentiments/remarks), Qin Xin was surprised but didn't take it to heart. To him, with the walking alchemy master Dan Qing by his side, no one else could even register on his radar.

Jia Yan slowly stood up, pressed his hands down, and instantly, the entire square became so quiet you could hear a pin drop. His old and deep voice rang in the ears of everyone present.

"Students on the Hidden Dragon Ranking, enter the arena!"

As Jia Yan's voice fell, the martial artists on the entire platform instantly felt their true energy surge, and their fiery fighting spirit quietly expanded!

"Bang!"

A purple electric current flashed across the sky. Lin Jinglei took a light step and used the force to leap out, landing on the ground. Powerful true energy fluctuations spread out in all directions, making a loud bang. The people from the Weaponry Academy not far away couldn't help but tremble under the influence of this true energy fluctuation.

The other students in the audience were also amazed by Lin Jinglei's imposing aura, and many members of the Sword Clan cheered him on from below, creating a powerful atmosphere.

Seeing this, Qin Xin simply shook his hand to brush away the dust in front of him. After more than twenty people from the Weaponry Academy stepped forward, Qin Xin calmly walked into the crowd.

Each person entered the factory in a different way, just like making a tough statement to their opponent before the competition. For a moment, the entire platform was filled with colorful true energy, and dozens of muffled sounds fell continuously, accompanied by the cheers of the students in the arena!

"Me too!"

A childish voice suddenly rang out, and a small child, holding a half-eaten elixir, swaggered onto the platform.

"Dragonwood!"

Upon hearing the little boy's voice, Qin Xin's eyes flashed with surprise, and Long Mu seemed to have also noticed Qin Xin's presence, walking straight towards him.

"Damn it, Qin Xin, did you offend this terrifying powder keg?!"

Jiang Xinghai looked at Long Mu's approaching steps, his eyes filled with terror, and instinctively took a few steps back.

"A powder keg? I think this little boy is quite cute." Qin Xin was a bit puzzled, as he didn't know much about Long Mu.

"Cute? Qin Xin, are you stupid? Long Mu is the number one on the Hidden Dragon Ranking, unchallenged for many years. The top ten on the Hidden Dragon Ranking have all been beaten by this powder keg. He even extorted spiritual herbs from us, and beat us if we didn't give them to him. He's simply a devil!"

Jiang Xinghai said excitedly, at which point Long Mu had already walked up to Qin Xin.

"Qin Xin, is this guy trying to bully you? I'll beat him up for you!" Long Mu waved his little fist, looking at Jiang Xinghai who was trying to pull Qin Xin away.

"No, they are all my friends." Qin Xin shook his head and pointed to Jiang Xinghai and the others.

“Oh, I know you. A year ago, you got a fourth-grade spiritual herb. I asked you for it, but you wouldn’t give it to me, so I beat you up for a bit. But that herb was too bitter, so I threw it away after eating half of it.” Long Mu looked at Jiang Xinghai, who was already hiding behind Qin Xin, and said after thinking for a moment.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Xinghai gave a bitter smile. Facing Long Mu, whose body was like a monster, the pain from those punches that landed on his flesh was still unforgettable.

"It's nothing, it's been so long, I've forgotten about it," Jiang Xinghai said with a forced smile.

Lin Jinglei and his group, who were not far away, seemed to have also noticed Long Mu coming to Qin Xin's side. Their eyes revealed doubt, and they were all somewhat wary of Long Mu.

"Ugh, these people are so annoying! If it weren't for them, I wouldn't have been dragged into this manual labor by my master!"

Long Mu also noticed Lin Jinglei and the others' gazes, and a hint of dissatisfaction appeared on his small face.

"By the way, wasn't it said you could go directly into the inner courtyard? Why are you participating in the competition?" Jiang Xinghai was somewhat surprised by Long Mu's appearance and asked cautiously.

"I've been doing manual labor lately and I'm feeling a bit frustrated, so this is a good opportunity to practice my boxing." A sly glint flashed across Long Mu's somewhat indignant face.

Upon seeing this, Jiang Xinghai's face darkened, and he exchanged a glance with Qin Xin.

When Jia Yan, the dean of the Weaponry Academy, saw Long Mu's arrival, his expression turned somewhat unpleasant, as if he had been tormented by him.

"Elder Huo? What do you think of this?" Jia Yan asked, looking at Huo Sheng, who was dressed in a blue Taoist robe.

"Let him be. It's a good opportunity to train these kids properly." Huo Sheng said calmly, with a hint of doting in his eyes when he looked at Long Mu. However, when he saw Qin Xin next to Long Mu, he seemed to have thought of something.

"Now that everyone is present, the inner court selection competition can begin." Jia Yan's aged and deep voice rang out again in the arena. "However, I must remind all students that although swords and spears are ruthless in martial arts, please do not kill anyone, otherwise you will be dealt with according to the academy rules."

"Next, we'll draw lots to determine our opponents!"

Jia Yan didn't waste any words and said in a deep voice.

As soon as the words were spoken, everyone's eyes were focused on a stone platform with a bamboo tube on it. Inside the tube were bamboo sticks with numbers on them, fifty red sticks and fifty white sticks. Those who drew the same number would become opponents.

"Alright, let's begin the draw!"

The hundred participants walked orderly to the stone platform, drew bamboo sticks from it, and then stepped back.